Kristine McKee began her first term on the Board of the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens in May 2025. Her board service centers on long-range planning, financial stewardship, and advancing the strategic vision that ensures the Gardens continue to thrive for generations to come.

Kristine has owned and operated her own accounting, tax, and advisory firm since 1996, serving individuals, businesses, and nonprofits throughout the region. Her expertise includes tax preparation and planning, business and personal audits, and legal representation in U.S. Tax Court. She specializes in bringing clarity to complexity—developing systems, structure, and strategy that support long-term success. In serving the Gardens, she applies the same rigor, foresight, and care to an organization that holds deep value for the community.

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Kristine feels a strong connection to the Gardens as a living reflection of the natural beauty and ecology that define the Mendocino Coast. She views the Gardens as an educational, environmental, and cultural anchor for the region and is committed to helping ensure this treasured resource remains vibrant and well-supported for all who benefit from it.

Her favorite plants are the rhododendrons—always the rhododendrons. Each spring, their blooms feel like a gentle celebration, and because her home is surrounded by them, they are woven into her everyday landscape as well as the Gardens.

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Outside of her professional life, Kristine cares for four horses, who serve as personal trainers, therapists, and occasional comedians. One day, if they permit her to travel long enough, she hopes to experience Alaska from every vantage point—by boat, rail, road, foot, and air—to fully take in its sweeping grandeur.